Coroner confirms Sinéad O’Connor died of natural causes

Sinéad O’Connor died of natural causes, a London coroner’s court has confirmed.

Ms O’Connor was 56 when she was found dead in her flat in the Herne Hill area of South West London last July.

Following her death, the London Inner South Coroner directed that an autopsy be carried out, as there was no medical cause given.

The coroner also stated at the time that the results of the post-mortem would not be available for some weeks and a decision would then be made if an inquest was needed.

A spokesperson for Southwark Coroner’s Court has now confirmed that Ms O’Connor “died of natural causes”.

In a statement, they said: “This is to confirm that Ms O’Connor died of natural causes.

“The coroner has therefore ceased their involvement in her death. Any further enquiries should be directed to the Registrar at Lambeth.

“No further comments will be made.”

Ms O’Connor was propelled to international stardom in 1990 with her version of Nothing Compares 2 U.

Written by Prince, Sinéad O’Connor made the ballad her own and topped the charts around the world.

The simple, yet unforgettable, accompanying video featured almost nothing else but a close-up frame of the shaven-headed star singing with tears rolling down her cheeks.

Born Sinéad Marie Bernadette O’Connor in Glenageary, Co Dublin, in December 1966, the singer had a difficult childhood.

One of five children, Sinéad O’Connor spoke out about being subjected to physical abuse at the hands of her mother, who died in a car crash in 1985.

At the age of 15, she was placed in care for shoplifting and truancy.

But her musical talents were discovered while she was there and she released her first critically acclaimed album, The Lion and the Cobra, in 1987.

Her recording of Nothing Compares 2 U earned Sinéad O’Connor multiple Grammy Award nominations and, in 1991, she was named Artist of the Year by Rolling Stone magazine.

Throughout her career, she recorded 10 solo albums, wrote songs for films and collaborated with other artists but was also well-known for her controversial outbursts.

In 1990, Ms O’Connor said she would refuse to go on stage in New Jersey if The Star-Spangled Banner was performed.

The singer, who frequently spoke out about the child abuse scandal in the Catholic Church, made headlines two years later when she ripped up a photograph of Pope John Paul II while appearing as a guest on Saturday Night Live.

Click here to watch Sinéad, RTÉ’s documentary on the life and career of Sinéad O’Connor.